Storm Centre Archive

Frequently Asked Questions

Why are we naming storms?

The naming of storms using a single authoritative system should aid the communication of approaching severe weather through media partners and other government agencies. In this way the public will be better placed to keep themselves, their property and businesses safe.

Can I suggest a storm name?

We are not asking for names this year - we received around 10,000 last year.

A new list of names will be compiled jointly between Met Éireann and the Met Office. The Met Office component will make use of suggestions submitted via social media last year, although everyone is welcome to suggest names for future consideration - email to pressoffice@metoffice.gov.uk

When is a storm named?

The criteria we use for naming storms is based on our National Severe Weather Warnings service. This is based on a combination of both the impact the weather may have, and the likelihood of those impacts occurring.

A storm will be named when it has the potential to cause an amber 'be prepared' or red 'take action' warning.

Other weather types will also be considered, specifically rain if its impact could lead to flooding as advised by the Environment Agency, SEPA and Natural Resources Wales flood warnings. Therefore 'storms systems' could be named on the basis of impacts from the wind but also include the impacts of rain and snow.

You can also follow the Met Office on Facebook or Twitter for the latest updates.

Why are there no storms for Q, U, X, Y and Z?

To ensure we are in line with the US National Hurricane Centre naming conventions, we are not going to include names which begin with the letters Q, U, X, Y and Z. This will maintain consistency for official storm naming in the North Atlantic.

How are storm names chosen?

In September 2015 we began our Name Our Storms campaign and asked the public to send in their suggestions for names.

We received thousands of suggestions and this years list includes some of the most popular of those together with suggestions from Met Éireann.

UK and US Storm names?

To avoid any confusion over naming, if a storm is the remnants of a tropical storm or hurricane that has moved across the Atlantic, the well-established method of referring to it as, e.g. 'Ex-hurricane X' will continue.

We will only use names that have been officially designated by the National Weather Service in the US.

Are we having more storms?

Stormy weather is not unusual in the winter and we only need to go back to the winter of 2013-14 to see a similarly stormy winter. Overall, the period from mid-December 2013 to mid-February 2014 saw at least 12 major winter storms, and, when considered overall, this was the stormiest period of weather the UK has experienced for at least 20 years.

We have seen comparable or more severe storms in recent years, including 3 January 2012 and 8 December 2011, each of which caused widespread impacts.

You can find out more about some of the interesting weather we've had in recent years here on our past weather events pages.